1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a sun shade for automobile windows, and more particularly to such a shade which can be opened in a fan-like manner or folded to occupy substantially the space of a single blade.
2. Brief Description of the Prior Art
Removable shades have been developed for insertion between the windshield of an automobile and the dash to reflect the sunlight and thereby prevent the temperature within the automobile from rising to unacceptable levels when the automobile is left in the sunlight. For example, two such shades are shown in U.S. Pat. No. 4,332,414 which issued to Robert Surtin on June 1, 1982 and United Kingdom Design Registration No. 941,197 which was registered Mar. 22, 1969 to Siu Tung-Chow of Hong Kong. These prior art shades employ a plurality of elongated slats with elongated openings disposed in the slats between a pinned end and a free end thereof. A joinder tape is inserted through the openings to secure the slats together so that they can be opened in a fan-like manner or folded. While such prior art shades are effective in shading the interior of an automobile, there is room for improvement. For example, the joinder tape in the shade of the '414 patent is arranged so that the shade can only be opened in one direction (i.e., clockwise per FIG. 1) and when the edge of the slat forming one of the openings comes into direct contact with the tape. The ability to open the shade in one direction only is limiting and the sharp edge will tend to cause the tape to fray, thereby shortening the life of the shade. These and other disadvantages of the prior art are overcome by the present invention.